Charlie (somewhat) aces his interview with Tony Stark (a.k.a. Iron Man) and is given a large sum of money and access to very expensive lab equipment. A week goes by before Peter gets any news from Charlie. The manner in which he gets the news however, displeases him very much. The Project Manager at Stark Industries calls Peter inquiring about the status of Charlie's project and Peter is left with no other choice but to lie to her; Peter only agreed that Charlie could use his name as a reference, not put him down as a project partner.

Angry with himself for accepting to help Charlie in the first place, Peter makes his way to Charlie's laboratory to confront him. While there, he realizes why Charlie did not update Stark Industries about his project nor call him. Charlie is using shortcuts with the Vibranium. Shortcuts that Stark Industries would not approve of, that would lead them to cancel the funding for his project. Peter gives Charlie an ultimatum: whether he tells Stark Industries the truth by the next morning or else he’ll tell them.

Peter gone, Charlie freaks out and sets in motion the production of the Vibranium skin-suit but something goes horribly wrong and the whole lab blows up. At issue's end, Charlie lies on the ground, amidst the wreckage, covered in the Vibranium substance. This is where this issue picks up.

ACT 1: While some firefighters fend off the flames created by the explosion, others are busy rummaging through the wreckage to find survivors. And they do. Lying unconscious amidst the debris and covered in the Vibranium skin-suit, Charlie Weiderman is found. And so are containers filled with Vibranium. Seeing this, one of the firefighters alerts his colleagues to evacuate the area. Then two of them grab Charlie's limp body and prepare to move him out of there. But Charlie suddenly awakens and screams at them to let go of him, fearing that if Stark Industries finds out about what happened, they'll destroy all his work. The firefighters tell Charlie that they're only trying to get him out of there before the Vibranium containers blow up but Charlie doesn't see it that way and he catapults them over his head, sending them both flying into the piles of debris. But as they fall into the wreckage, one of the firefighters' oxygen tank gets ruptured and the inevitable happens. The oxygen tank blows up, killing its host in the process, and ignites a huge fire right next to the Vibranium container. Fearing for their lives, the two remaining firefighters take off running, leaving Charlie to be buried underneath falling debris.

ACT 2: The next morning at the Parker household, Mary Jane is getting ready to leave for her dress rehearsal and Peter is eating a bowl of cereal and partially listening to the news on the television, when the news anchorman mentions the explosion at the Stark Industries laboratory where Charlie was holding his experiments. Peter is stunned when he hears about it and seconds later, he is web-slinging towards the lab as Spider-Man, telling himself that this is not the first time Charlie does something stupid like that.

ACT 3: Flashback to when both Peter and Charlie were attending Midtown High School. Peter encounters Charlie, who – once again – has been beaten up by some of the school bullies. Peter knows that because he too was once the victim of bullying from the jocks. Charlie tries to lie about it but Peter knows too well that Charlie is not telling the truth. Peter confronts him about it and Charlie explains what really happened and what he might do next time to make them stop. Peter tries to find out what Charlie meant but Charlie refuses to say anything. A few weeks later, Peter and Charlie are walking across the football field when the jocks surround Charlie once more. Charlie tells them to back off and reaches in his backpack, pulling out a small knife. Peter sees this and pretends to trip, knocking Charlie off balance and making him drop the knife. At that moment, the football coach shows up, demanding to know what is going on. One of the jocks, who I assume is Flash Thompson, tries to tell the coach that Charlie pulled the knife out on them but Peter intervenes and tells the coach that the knife is his uncle's and that he brought it to school to sharpen it in shop class. The coach buys it but sends Peter to the principal’s office. 20 minutes later, Uncle Ben shows up at school and takes Peter home (Peter is not suspended but is given two weeks detention). On the way back to Forest Hills, Queens, Uncle Ben asks Peter about the knife and Peter explains what really happened back at the school. For a moment, Uncle Ben is quiet but then he tells Peter that "he is proud of him" and that "he did the right thing".

ACT 4: Back in the present, Spidey has made his way to the Charlie's lab and is eavesdropping on a conversation between some policemen and firefighters. According to one of the police investigators at the scene, they know that Charlie was renting lab space and a unit has been dispatched to his residence to see if he's there. They also are aware that he was not properly licensed to use Vibranium and that he used shortcuts, which changed the nature of the compound at molecular level and which caused the Vibranium to amplify the energy used in the process until it reached critical mass. Listening in on their conversation a bit further, Spidey finds out that the police don't have a picture that shows what Charlie looks like. However, they are confident that he won't hide for long due to his current physical appearance. Having heard enough, Spidey takes off and heads back to his apartment where he changes back to his day-to-day clothes. While there he ponders whether or not Charlie performed his skin-suit experiment because he (Peter) told him he wasn't going to cover up for him. It only takes Peter seconds to come to the conclusion that Charlie rushed things in order to prove that he could control the process. Suddenly, someone knocks at the door, so Peter goes to answer. As he opens the door, he comes face-to-face with Charlie.

ACT 5: Flashback once again to when Charlie and Peter were attending Midtown High School, shortly after the knife incident. One afternoon, a panicked Charlie arrives at the Parker household in Forest Hills, Queens, his pants and shirt ripped, imploring Peter to help him. Peter tries to calm him down, demanding to know what is going on. Charlie briefly explains that somebody slashed the jocks' vehicles' tires and that they think he did it. Uncle Ben and Aunt May appear in the hallway and ask to know what happened. Charlie tells them that the jocks are after him and that they have to let him hide in their house. May replies that if he’s in trouble, they should call the police but Charlie quickly replies that calling the cops will only make them madder. At that moment, someone outside yells for Charlie to get out of the house. Uncle Ben answers the door and comes face to face with four jocks that tell him to hand over Charlie. Uncle Ben tries to reason with them but they stubbornly refuse to leave without Charlie. Uncle Ben tells them that the only way they'll get to Charlie is by going through him. The lead jock, who I assume is Flash Thompson – but I could be wrong – replies to Uncle Ben that he doesn’t have a problem with that and he leaps at him, his fists in the air. With amazing swiftness, Uncle Ben grabs his attacker and slams him into one of the balcony's wooden posts. Seeing that, one of the other jocks tries to attack Uncle Ben from behind but Uncle Ben sees him coming and punches him in the chest. Before the other two jocks can even think about taking a shot at him, Uncle Ben tells them that they better clear out or else he'll call the police. The jocks take their leave and Uncle Ben goes back inside the house, slamming the front door behind him. Charlie immediately thanks him for what he did out there but Uncle Ben doesn't want to hear about it. All Uncle Ben wants to know is whether or not Charlie did slash their tires. Charlie replies that he didn’t but Uncle Ben doesn't buy it. He turns around and tells Peter that he is forbidden to associate with Charlie any longer. He then turns towards Charlie and tells him that if he had the basic moral courage to admit what he did, he (Uncle Ben) would at least respect him. He then tells him that he can stay in the house for another 30 minutes - the jocks will tire by then - but then he is to get out of the house and never return after that.

ACT 6: Back in the present, Charlie explains what happened back at the lab and tells Peter that he can fix it. Peter replies that two people are dead and a bunch more are seriously injured and asks Charlie to explain how he's going to fix that. Charlie replies that nobody knows it's him under the skin-suit and tells Peter that they could make up a story about Spider-Man breaking into the lab and causing the explosion. Peter refuses to go along with Charlie's plan and tells him that he doesn't think it's a good idea to blame Spider-Man for the destruction of the lab. Charlie begs Peter for his help, telling him that if he, Peter, can get access to the material he needs to get the skin-suit off, everything will work out and nobody will find out that it was him that caused the explosion. Peter tells Charlie that he indeed does need help but adds that the only way he's going to get it is if he turns himself in. Charlie replies that he can't and implores Peter to help him. Peter replies that he's trying to but Charlie interrupts him and accuses Peter of wanting to send him to jail so he can take the credit for his work. Peter tries to reason with him but Charlie becomes enraged and puts his fist through the wall. He then tells Peter that he, Peter, is going to help him or else he'll kill him and everyone around him. To be continued.